


Behind The Door

by InNeedOfInspiration



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Romanogers - Fandom, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-01
Updated: 2018-12-01
Packaged: 2019-09-05 01:52:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16801321
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InNeedOfInspiration/pseuds/InNeedOfInspiration
Summary: Based on an anonymous prompt.From Bruce's POV. Banner would like to a chance with Natasha again but soon realizes that there Steve seems to play a big part in her life now.





	Behind The Door

He coudn’t lie. It was obvious. He still felt a connection to Natasha.

He couldn’t deny that seeing her face in that monitor had awakened him from his remote slumber and pulled him back to the surface, like a hand forcibly guiding him upwards in a boundless pool.

The Hulk weakened and Dr. Bruce Banner gained strength as he pushed his way back to the world he had chosen to shut himself from a few years before.

After Thanos broke havoc aboard the Asgardian ship and Heimdall sent him back to Earth — sent him back home — part of him couldn’t, despite the apocalyptic message he was to deliver, apprehend the moment his path would bring him back to Natasha.

Of course, he knew she didn’t owe him anything. Of course, he was well aware he had no right to expect anything from her after so long, and after his cowardly escape. Yet, Bruce Banner, somewhere deep down, allowed himself to hope she had let their door slightly ajar. And that perhaps with time and a great and consistent effort to gain her trust back, she would let that door open more.

His heart pounded hard in his chest when his hear recognized her voice. He also gulped nervously when he stepped in the room and found her slender figure standing in the middle of the room.

Surely, she looked surprised to see him. And it stunned him to see she didn’t welcome him with any sort of palpable animosity. She looked collected. No; she looked serene.

She stood close to Cap and there was something in their silent proximity which unmissably filled the entire room.

Bruce had missed three years and he could already that Natasha and Steve’s relationship had considerably developed since he had left.

He quietly observed them from his corner in the conference room. Steve and Natasha never even once spoke to each other but yet were in a continual form of communication both seemed to do so organically it reached the point it was done unconsciously.

Their indistinct nods, their brief glances, their silent stares, the intuitive rotation of the angles of their bodies toward each other; Steve and Natasha were two strong forces in the room who continuously acknowledged each other on an imperceptible level.

So Bruce began to wonder if the trail to his door hadn’t been cut by the path Steve Rogers paved.

It seemed Natasha did not hold any hard feeling. And as comfortable it was to talk with her without feeling any sort of hostility, he caught himself bothered by her solid countenance. He tried to seek an ounce of anger that could betray some unresolved feelings but to his misfortune, he found none. Natasha was truly at peace when it came to their relationship, and he feared it meant, rather than a tranquil openness to a second chance in the future, the amicable confirmation that she had fully moved on. 

After the Snap, and when all gathered in the late King’s palace, Bruce observed again how she and Steve couldn’t seem to be apart from each other. It seemed the other’s presence in the room was the very thing which prevented them from tumbling down, kept them standing.

When civic obligations forced them apart, Natasha went missing for a couple hours. Overcome by sleep eventually, Bruce was awakened by the sound of weightless steps along the corridor. Lying on a large sofa, he opened his eyes and immediately identified the feline silhouette passing by in the dark corridor.

Curiosity grasped him tightly and he got up. He popped his head out into the corridor and watched as Natasha walked past many doors before stopping in front of one. She quietly grazed the wooden surface and waited. The door opened ajar first, then wide enough for her to step in — and for Bruce to recognize Steve.

Steve, worn out, was completely unaware of his surroundings. But not the Black Widow.

She caught sight of Bruce peeping through just as turned to hold the knob. She glanced in his direction, then closed the door.

Banner went back to his sofa, then eventually stepped out into the terrace. The whole land was just desolation, and still bore the lacerations of the ruthless battle, but the full moon bestowed a stillness unhoped for at this dark hour.

A couple of hours went by which he spent in his familiar solitude when he heard footsteps behind him. Natasha stepped out of the shadows, wearing shorts and a large white shirt.

He looked back at the horizon and she came to stand by his side. Silence settled in.

“I’m sorry,” he began whilst gazing ahead. “I didn’t mean to pry.”

She welcomed his apology with a gentle nod. “How is he doing?” he asked.

“He’s pulling through…I think,” she answered. Her eyes clouded with stern concern. “He’s asleep now.”

He nodded, silently acknowledging the reserved emotion she couldn’t quite conceal. The silver necklace around her neck gleamed under the moonlight. His eyes trail down to the rib of her shirt — the shape of a round metal object, unmistakably recognizable, was embossed under the fabric. 

He smiled to himself at his credulity. He found comfort in the strong belief she was happy and loved the way she deserved.

“I’m glad you’re okay,” she murmured kindly.

“Yeah. Me too.”


End file.
